Who is The Weeknd? life and most popular songs
The Canadian artist will perform at the half-time interval at the 2021 Super Bowl at the Raymond James Stadium in Tampa Bay (Florida).
30-year-old Canadian Abel Makkonen Tesfaye aka The Weeknd is the main artist performing at the half-time interval at Sunday's 2021 Super Bowl as the Tampa Bay Buccaneers face reigning champions Kansas City Chiefs in Tampa Bay.
The Weeknd initially came to the attention of executives at Republic Records via a series of mix-tapes with the Toronto born issuing his first commercial release in 2015 which saw the "Trilogy" album feature re-worked versions of his early songs which was critically acclaimed upon release and went on to be certified a platinum seller in the US.
Tesfaye who endured a complicated upbringing was often compared to compatriot Drake in the early stage of his career with the Toronto native contributing with The Weeknd in much of his earlier work. Citing R.Kelly, Prince and Michael Jackson as influences, Tesfaye has a rich personal musical taste also citing UK indie artists such as Cocteau Twins and Siouxsie and the Banshees as influences.
The debut studio from The Weeknd was released in 2013 entitled "Kiss Land". The album debuted in the Billboard charts at number 2 and was positively received by the critics.
Beauty Behind the Madness
The self-produced "Beauty Behind the Madness" followed in 2015 with the release including high profile collaborations from the likes of Lana del Rey and Ed Sheeran. The album reached No. 1 in both UK and US charts and spawned hits such as "The Hills" and "I Can't Feel My Face".
Starboy
An inspired collaboration with French electronic house duo Daft Punk who co-produced the 2016 album "Starboy" once again saw a star-studded roster of guests performing on the record as Kendrick Lamar, Lana del Rey and Future featured on the release which went on to sell over three million units in the US achieving triple platinum status. "I Feel it Coming", "Party Monster" and the self titled "Starboy" were just three of the seven singles released from the album.
After Hours
March 2020 saw the release of the last studio album from the 30-year-old with "After Hours". "Heartless" was the lead intro single from the record but it was the single "Blinding Lights" that propelled the album reaching the number one position in 34 countries. It also became his first number one single in Germany for ten weeks, the UK for eight weeks, and Australia for eleven weeks. It is his most successful single worldwide to date and currently holds the record for most weeks spent in the top 5 and top 10 of the Billboard Hot 100.
To coincide with his Super Bowl performance on Sunday, a new 18 track "Best of" compilation was released on Friday 5 Febryary (2021) entitled "The Highlights". The same week, the artist also announced a major US and European tour for 2022 to support the album.